Sian grew up on a diet of James Bond and John Le Carre, studied spooks and tradecraft at King's, is a qualified paraglider pilot, regular theatre-goer and an avid rugby fan. Her preferred method of relaxation is hiking, preferably on an upwards gradient, with a whisky distillery waiting for her somewhere on the distant, downward leg.

Initially harbouring political ambitions, a cheeky question posed to a post-Soviet president during a PR tour of London in 2007 led her instead to a land of ruthless hospitality and delicious dumplings: the Republic of Georgia. A year of election monitoring, youth work and humanitarian assistance, followed by a side step into banking, brought her back to London to forge a career in business intelligence.

Having survived a few "black box" BI projects herself, Sian is always looking for new ways to help business users get at and understand their data.